
THE HOMBIRD 



LAND AND IMPROUEMENT 



COMPRNY 



OF 



COMBERLflND, MflRYLflND 



PROSPECTUS 



OF THE 



4 

HUMBIRD 

Land and Improvement Company 




)-i/8fc^ ' 



{^^^.^ CUMBERLAND 



ALLEGANY COUNTY, MARYLAND 



Office No. 9 South Liberty Street, up stairs. 



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Entered according to Act of Congress in the year j8oi, by 

The Humbird Land and Imi'kovement Company, 

in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington 






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Description of Humbird Lands. 

r'HE Humbird Land and Improvement Company offer 
for sale the lands designated by the accompanying 
plat, twenty-three acres of vvhich lie on the north side 
.» of the Baltimore and Ohio lands, which are to be used for 

yards and shops; one hundred and forty-seven acres adjoin the 
same property on the south. This property is in close prox- 
imity to the Crown and Cumberland Steel works and Queen 
City Glass works, who employ a large wage-earning population. 
Many of the employees of these establishments are obliged to 
live at a great distance from their work on account of the lack 
of dwelling houses ; and the new population to be brought 
here by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad for employment in 
their shops and yards is to be provided for. 

The land of the Humbird Company gently slopes towards 
the Chesapeake and Ohio canal and the Potomac river, mak- 
ing it suitable for residences, business houses and factories, 
and at the same time affording cheap and thorough drainage. 
Many shade trees will be preserved to add to the beauty of the 
residence sites, and the contiguity of the mountains will make 
the scenery from every site entrancing. An electric street 
railway will extend from this property to all parts of the city. 

This property will be sold in lots varying in size 
from 50 by 125 feet to 50 by 150 feet, for one-third in cash 
and the balance in monthly or quarterly instalments, to suit 
convenience of purchasers. 

To appreciate the advantages and beauty of this property it 
should be seen. The officers of the company will take pleasure 
in showing it at all times, or will furnish full jjarticulars and 
prices by letter upon application. 

J. WILSON HUMBIRD, 

President. 



No. 9 South Liberty Street, Cumberland, 



Md. 




Introduction. 

!'HE purpose of this prospectus is to put before capital- 

p^ij^. ists and those seeking homes the claims of Cumberland 
in as conservative and concise a form as possible. 

The claims of Cumberland are not fictitious; they are real, 
substantial and can be seen ; its future is patent, its possibilities 
potential. 

It will be seen from the following pages that Cumberland 
possesses facilities for manufacturing unsurpassed by any city 
in the State or elsewhere. We have the best coal for steam 
purposes in the world lying at our very doors, and railroads 
affording transportation to all parts of the Union. The Ches- 
apeake and Ohio canal gives us a highway to tide-water, em- 
ploying a large number of people. The manufacturers now 
here, and they are considerable, are prosperous, and owing to 
the large demands made upon them a number have been 
obliged to enlarge their establishments. All departments of 
trade are in a healthy and growing condition. Tho.se who 
come stay. But there is ample room for more. 

We will not attempt to recount in this brief introductory 
the advantages that Cumberland presents to those desiring to 
invest their money in homes or paying enterprises. We 
simply ask a careful perusal of the following resume. 



The City of Cumberland. 

CUMBERLAND, the "Queen City of the Alleghanies," is 
one of the most beautifully located towns in the South 
and is the second city in the State, having now a pop- 
ulation of 13,000. It is situated at the junction of the North 
Branch of the Potomac river and Wills creek, and is sur- 
rounded by the most beautiful mountain scenery to be found 
in the United States. 

The history of Cumberland is co-extensive with that of the 
Nation. Washington had his headquarters here. The story 
is told in history and need not be retold here. 

The city of Cumberland is the county seat of Allegany 
county, Maryland, and the main depot of supplies for a large 
number of towns within a radius of a hundred miles. It is 
the most important station between Baltimore and Chicago 
on the main stem of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad and is 
now the end of three divisions of that road. It is the 
terminus of the Cumberland and Pennsylvania railroad, the 
Bedford division of the Pennsylvania railroad, the Pittsburg 
and Connell-sville railroad, the West Virginia Central railroad 
and the George's Creek and Cumberland railroad, and is also 
the head of the Chesapeake and Ohio canal, over which a 
large amount of the Cumberland coal from the coal region is 
shipped to tide-water. 

The advantages afforded by Cumberland as a location for 
manufactories are manifold and important. First is that great 
desideratum, cheap fuel. Cumberland coal is known as the 
best steam generator in the world and is sold in the city to 
domestic consumers at $1.50 per ton, and to manufac- 
turers for ^1.30 per ton, delivered. Another important 
consideration in connection with the advantages offered by 
Cumberland to manufacturers is its never-failing supply of pure 
water, which is furnishetl by the Holly system of water supply 



and fire protection. It is lighted by gas and electricity. The 
streets are well paved with stone and fire-brick and many of 
them shaded with trees. Its elevation being about seven 
hundred feet above tide level makes the city comparatively 
free from miasma, and its climate healthy and invigorating. 
Abundance of choice and beautiful building sites, both for 
residence and manufacturing purposes, are to be found, in the 
southern portion of the city owned by the Humbikd Land 
AND Improvement Company, a plat of which will be seen in 
the front of this book. 

Of course it would be impossible to include in this article, 
in a satisfactory way, all the advantages claimed by Cumber- 
land ; therefore they will be found under separate and proper 
heads. 



Distance from Important Cities. 

ffT will be seen from the following table that Cumberland 
is absolutely without competition in trade, of any 
C^'^ considerable moment, within a radius of over a 
hundred miles, and that it is within but a few hours' ride ot 
many of the principal cities of the country, a fact of no small 
consideration. 

Miles 

New York, via Pennsylvania Railroad 384 

New York, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 366 

Philadelphia, via Pennsylvania Railroad 290 

Philadelphia, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 267 

Baltimore, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 17S 

Washington, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 154 

Georgetown, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 156 

Georgetown, via Chesapeake and Ohio Canal 184 

Harrisburg, via Cumberland Valley Railroad 172 

Pittsburg, via Pittsburg and Connellsville Railroad 150 

Chicago, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 661 

St. Louis, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 751 

Cincinnatti, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 411 

Wheeling, via Baltunore and Ohio Railroad 201 

Parkersburg, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 206 

Columbus, via Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 335 

Sandusky, via Baltimore and Ohio Rail iMal 41S 

Cleveland, via I]altimore and Ohio Raiimail nnd C. P 300 



Population. 

(^ INCE the census of 1 870 Cumberland has grown rapidly in 
population. To-day it numbers within its corporate limits 
about 13,000 inhabitants, and, including the villages and 
hamlets adjoining the city, the population is close to 16,000. 



Scarcity of Dwelling Houses 

S an evidence of the rapid growth of Cumberland it may 
'Tik be said that, although a large number of dwellings 
® have been erected within the last year or two, and 

many are in course of building, yet there are no houses 
to meet the demand. In many instances two and three 
families occupy the same dwelling, and rooms over 
stores, never known to be tenanted, are now occupied. 
This difficulty will, however, be overcome shortly, as several 
hundred houses will be erected during the spring, summer 
and fall to meet the demands of the Baltimore and Ohio 
employees, who will number 1,200 men, or more, not includ- 
ing train men, who will locate here. 



Manufacturing Interests in the City and 

Vicinity. 



I 



'UMBERLAND, by its geographical location, is destined 
to become a manufacturing city; nothing can prevent it, 
excepting lack of capital, and this must, in time, find 
investment here for the following reasons: First, its various 
railroad facilities, affording transportation to all parts of the 
United States. Second, it is at the head of the great Chesapeake 
and Ohio canal, one of the most famous water-ways in the 
country, furnishing a cheap means of transportation for our coal 
and other commodities to tide-water. Third, IT IS IN THE 
HEART OF THE FINEST COAL FIEDS IN THIS 
OR ANY OTHER COUNTRY, thereby affording cheap 



fuel for all purposes. This coal is absolutely free from sulphur, 
easier to fire and will generate more steam to the ton than any 
other known coal. 

Cumberland can count to-day among its factories and plants 
the following : 

One large rolling-mill, operated by the Cambria Iron 
Company. One large steel plant, operated by the Crown 
and Cumberland Steel Company One large paper mill, with 
the capacity of ten tons per day. One shafting works, the 
product of which has become famous. Two large glass fac- 
tories, employing over three hundred men. Two foundries 
and machine shops. Three large tanneries. Two sash, door 
and blind factories. Three large planing mills. Four large 
breweries. Two distilleries. Six cigar factories. Two fur- 
niture factories. Two carriage factories. Two cement mills, 
with a capacity of 1,300 barrels per day. Four brick works. 
Two marble and granite yards. One ice factory. Two book 
binderies. Two daily papers. Four weekly papers. Two 
soap factories. Two lime works. One stone ballast crusher 
works. One Standard oil distributing depot. 

In addition to the above, this city has the shops of the 
Baltimore and Ohio railroad, the West Virginia Central 
and the George's Creek and Cumberland railroad, all employ- 
ing a large number of men. 

One of the most recent industries added to the city is that 
of the Potomac Paper company, and although in operation 
but less than a year, is running day and night to supply the 
demand for their product. 

In the immediate vicinity of Cumberland are located the 
works of the Standard Savage Fire Brick Works; the fire 
brick works of the Union Mining company and the Savage 
Mountain Fire Brick Works, and the car and locomotive 
works of the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad 
company. 

Leases have been made and plans formulated for the 
con.struction of another cement mill, with a capacity of 500 



barrels, which will increase the output of Cumberland cement 
to 1 ,800 barrels per day. 

Several of the above-named plants are increasing their 
capacity as their exigencies may require. 

Cumberland's magnificent resources of raw material, climate, 
cheap labor, proximity to the seaboard antl to markets and 
its railroad facilities have been heralded to the world and out 
of a horn of plenty a golden stream of wealth will seek its 
borders for investment. 



Facilities for Transportation. 

j''UMBERLAND'S facilities for transportation are 
unequaled by any city of its size in the Union. It is 
distinctly a railroad town, having the following 
railroads running into the city : The Baltimore and Ohio, 
main line ; the Pittsburg and Connellsville, running to 
Pittsburg, thence via. the Pittsburg and Western to Cleve- 
land, Toledo and Chicago, (the end of the division of the 
Pittsburg and Connellsville being here), the Pennsylvania, con- 
necting with the main line at Huntingdon, Pa.; the West 
Virginia Central railway has its terminus here and runs 
through the rich coal and timber fields of West Virginia. 
In addition thereto the West Virginia Central propose to 
extend their line south to connect with the Chesapeake and 
Ohio railroad, and east to connect at Hagerstown with the 
Cumberland Valley, Western Maryland and Shenandoah 
Valley railroads. They will then, by these connections, have 
an outlet east by the Reading railroad. 

In addition to the above railroads, Cumberland has the 
Cumberland and Pennsylvania, running from Cumberland 
through the coal fields of Allegany county to Piedniont, where 
it connects with the Baltimore and Ohio ; the George's Creek 
and Cumberland, extending through the same coal fields and 
terminating at Lonaconing, and the P^ckhart Branch of the 
Cumberland and Pennsylvania, which runs to other mines in 



the Cumberland region. Splendid and cheap transportation 
is also afforded by the Chesapeake and Ohio canal to tide- 
water from Cumberland. 

The Cumberland Coal Fields. 

f[T would be a work of supererogation to attempt 
to describe the Cumberland coal fields ; they are simply 
inexhaustible. The coal is a free-burning bituminous 
coal, containing about 75 per cent, of fixed carbon, with no 
impurities, slaty or earthy particles. It surpasses all other 
coals for steam purposes and is used by manufacturers 
throughout this and eastern states and by the great steamers 
from Baltimore and New York and other cities. 

As an evidence of the demand for Cumberland coal 
66,643,885 tons have been shipped from this region during 
the forty-nine years of its operations. The coal shipped from 
this region in 189O was 4,006,091 tons, an increase over the 
previous year of 792,205 tons. 

In addition to the abundant supply of this valuable mineral 
contained in the Cumberland basin, other mines of similar 
coal have been opened in the adjoining counties of Pennsyl- 
vania and West Virginia. Large amounts of coke also come 
to the city from Pennsylvania and West Virginia. This is an 
item of consumption in the manufacture of iron, &c., that is 
of no small importance, and when it can be found at the very 
doors, so to speak, of factories, is of paramount consideration. 



New B. & O. Shops and Yards. 

. jiT-'HE Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Compan)% recognizing 
I(|M the importance of Cumberland as a distributing point 
for the large territory lying around it, and the further fact 
that its location made it desirable as the terminus of three of 
its divisions, namely, the second, third and Pittsburg, proposed 
to the mayor and council of Cumberland that in consideration 
of the loan of ^S 150,000, without interest, by the city, the 
company would make Cumberland the end of the above 



divisions, and in addition, would purchase a large tract of 
land within the city limits, upon which they would erect 
machine shops and round houses. The proposition was 
submitted to the voters of Cumberland on the 17th of June 
last and was carried by a majority of four to one, showing 
that the people of Cumberland appreciated the vast importance 
of securing these improvements. 

The company has purchased 90 acres of land, upon which 
will be erected their yards and shops. The Baltimore and 
Ohio propose to make Cumberland the Altoona of their road, 
and to that end have arranged to construct a yard that will 
contain trackage for 3,000 cars, which, in addition to the yards 
already here, will give the company splendid facilities for the 
handling of their immense traffic. The shops will be con- 
structed after an improved plan of the Pennsylvania Railroad 
shops at Altoona, Pa., and will give employment to twelve 
hundred men. The train and other railroad men, numbering 
at least 1,000, will necessarily make their homes in Cumber- 
land. From these sources alone an increase of population is 
confidently expected of 6,000 to 7,000. It necessarily follows 
that the addition of this population to Cumberland will bring 
others, of all professions and trades, and it is safe to predict 
that the building boom during the years 1891 and 1892 will 
assume immense proportions. 



Timber Resources. 

^IjT^HE great timber State of Maine does not contain a 
(I|mI- finer or greater variety of timber than lies at the ver\' 
portals of Cumberland. The West Virginia Central 
Railway terminating here, runs for miles through as fine timber 
as can be found in the United States, with varieties such as 
spruce, pine, hemlock, oak, hickory, maple, chestnut, ash, 
cherry, poplar and black walnut. On the line of the l-5aItimore 
and Ohio Railroad westward for over forty miles, there is also 
a s[)lendid timber field, as well as on the Pittsburg and 
ConncUsville Railroad. In addition to this there are larire 



tracts eastward from Cumberland, from which timber is 
brought to this city over the Chesapeake and Ohio canal. 
An immense quantity of timber is used in boatbuilding, which 
is an important feature in the manufactures of Cumberland. 

Iron and Steel. 

ff'HE manufacture of iron and steel in Cumberland and 

p^^ vicinity has been carried on to great extent, showing 
that both can be made here as cheaply and of as good 
quality as elsewhere. 

Superior ores are to be found within a few miles of the city, 
which can be transported either by rail or by water (Chesa- 
peake and Ohio canal) at extremely low rates. 

The Cambria Iron company are now operating the large 
steel works and rolling mills, leased by that company from 
the Baltimore and Ohio railroad company. These mills were 
built here in 1 870 and are among the largest and best equipped 
in the country. A large number of men are employed at 
these mills. 

The Crown and Cumberland Steel Works is also a splendid 
establishment, containing the most improved machinery. A 
large number of men find employment here. 

Glass, Cement, Fire-clay, Etc. 

0|r MONO the principal industries in the city are two glass 

lljnL factories. Together they employ over three hundred 

fe men, boys arid girls. The glass is of superior quality, 

both as to clearness and texture, and finds a ready sale in the 

markets of the country. 

A well-known scientific writer says of the advantages of 
Cumberland for the manufacture of glass : " Upon making a 
careful survey of the advantages of Cumberland it is an 
unavoidable conclusion that for the manufacture of glass there 
can be found no locality where are assembled together in greater 
abundance the varied materials, all adapted to such a purpose, 
than the city of Cumberland and its immediate vicinity. In 



manufacturinf:^ Ljlass the only material needed from abroad in 
any appreciable quantity would be soda ash and crucible 
stock." 

Medina sandstone is abundant — there are millions of tons 
of it — which can be had almost for the asking-. An analysis of 
it by Prof C. H. Chandler, of Columbia Collei^e, New York, 
showed 98.35 per cent, of silica and only 042 per cent, of 
sesquioxide of iron. Professor Chandler wrote : " I am satisfied, 
therefore, that the sandstone is in every respect well fitted for 
the manufacture of gla.ss of the best quality." 

Some idea of the remarkable success of the glass industries 
of Cumberland may be gathered from the fact that a company 
was organized here in 1883. with a capital of $15,000; its 
capital is now ^70,000, over and above all liabilities. For the 
year 1889 the net earnings of this company were over ;jS 18,000. 
About J^ 1 8,000 were recently expended in increasing the 
capacity of this company's plant. 

Fire-clay is an important product in the Cumberland coal 
region. Within ten miles of the city there are in constant 
operation three extensive fire-brick works. The bricks are 
well known to ironmasters and smelters all over the United 
States and are considered the best in the countr\' for furnace 
purposes. 

There are also a number of deposits of superior potter's 
clay, which has been scarcely touched, as well as clay for 
building-brick, the latter to be found in abundance within the 
city limits. 

The hydraulic cement manufectured here from rock taken 
from the hills in the northern part of the city, and known in 
the market as " Cumberland cement," is pronounced by 
builders and contractors as second to none, and is u.sed by 
THE United State.s Government in preference to all 
OTHERS. It is noted for the energy of its action and 
vviLi- bear a greater admixture of sand than any other 
natural cement now in use. Mining in this rock has been 
carried on for over thirty years, and yet the supply is incx- 



haustiblc. Such has been the demand for this cement that 
the Cumberland HydrauHc Cement and Manufacturing Com- 
pany have increased the capacity of their mill from 500 to 
1,000 barrels per day. 

The Cedar Cliff Cement Company have recently constructed 
a mill with a capacity of 300 barrels per day. 

Building stone, of an excellent quality, may be obtained at 
but little cost within a short distance of the city. But little 
quarrying is needed, and the stone can be put directly upon 
the cars or upon wagons. 

Wholesale and Retail Trade. 

fHE wholesale distribution of the city and vicinity is 
represented by two large wholesale groceries, one 
wholesale notion and dry goods and large whole- 
sale liquor establishments, all of them doing exclusively 
a wholesale business. There is a good opening here for a 
wholesale boot and shoe house, cracker factory, drugs and 
hardware. 

The retail stores in all branches are well established, care- 
fully managed, and among them are some of the largest 
establishments to be found in the State. 



Water Supply. 

^UMBERL./\ND is bountifully supplied with excellent 
water by the " Holly system of water supply and fire 
i protection," the introduction of which cost the city 
upwards of $150,000. 

There are also several well regulated and equipped fire 
companies, self supporting. 

Churches, Hotels, Banks, Etc. 

flVHE churches of the city number seventeen, as follows: 
M One English Lutheran, two German Lutheran, four 
Hi Methodist, one Baptist, two Catholic (English and 
German,) one Presbyterian, one Protestant Episcopal, one 



German Rcfonncd, one Jewish Synagogue, and three colored 
(two Methodist and one Baptist). There is also a Young 
Men's Christian Association, with a large and growing mem- 
bership, a fine library and well equipped gymnasiurli. 

The hotel accommodations of the city are as good as there 
are in the State. The fine hotel of the I^altimore and Ohio 
Railroad Company, the most splendid on the line of the road, 
is located here, besides, there are several other first-class hotels, 
the Windsor being the largest and most prominent, and also 
a number of good restaurants. 

There are three National Banks in the city, whose capital 
and surplus aggregate $600,000. Each bank owns its own 
building, all three of which are substantial and beautiful 
structures. 

Splendid educational facilities are provided by the public 
school sy.stem of the State, the buildings of which are com- 
modious, light, well ventilated and heated. The other 
educational institutions are the Allegany County Academy, 
(endowed,) the Carmelite College, St. Edward's Academy, 
conducted by the Sisters of Mercy of the Roman Catholic 
church; a parochial school, connected with the German 
Catholic church of SS. Peter and Paul's, and several good 
private schools, male and female. 



The New York Tribune on Cumberland. 

" E-xcepting Pittsburg, it would be diflicult to find a city more favorably 
situated than Cumberland for gigantic achievements in trade. A stranger in the 
town wearies of the eternal clangor of the bells, and rattle of wheels, and roaring 
of steam in the iron throat of a hundred locomotives. The hilly streets and maze 
of railroad tracks and brooks and bridges are confusmg, and the tremendous bluffs 
that hedge him in look I ileak enough under leaden clouds, with their smooth and 
snow-covered sides. IJut think what all this represents. The iron ways meet from 
all points of the compass, bringing ore from a dozen fields, coal to smelt it from 
immense mines over the hills, sand that is nearly pure silica, and lire-clay for 
crucibles to transmute it into glass, timber to be turned into houses or newspapers, 
bark for tanneries, rock for cement, clay for l)ncks, farm produce for the population 
and orders for supplies from a hundred lowns and hamlets in the neighborhood. 
The solid ridges that represent the subsidence from ages of Hood contain material 
for centuries of human industry, and the turbulent stream that winds by the town 



divides it from the almost untouched hoards of Nature in West Virginia. It is no 
wonder Cumberland is waking up. The wonder is that it has been so long about it. 
It is gratifying to believe that in future the town will have some hand in the 
prosperity that in the past it has owed entirely to others. It is more than a 
hundred years old, yet but for the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, whose trunk line 
passes through it, and the Chesapeake and Ohio canal, that ends here, it would 
probably be no larger than any other way station between Washington and Cincin- 
nati. It is only when you climb a hill and regard it in a Ijird's-eye view that you 
realize its possil)i]ities. Its roofs and turrets cluster in the basin of an immense 
amphitheatre, into which j^rojects the ends of tlie ridges like fingers of an open 
hand. The buildings straggle up in the open between these fingers and assail the 
hill-sides and are overhung by beetling crags, and there are tapering smokestacks 
far along the margin of the creek that divides the town and disappears through a 
mighty canon towards the north. The north branch of the Potomac forms a loop 
around the foot of a high knoll that juts out into the middle of the city, and the 
canal follows its meanderings to the eastward. The scene in summer is superb. 
— A". V. Tiibunc, Feb. /, iSgi. 



Finis. 

N clo.sing thi.s prospectus we would say that the 
Hunibird Land and Improvement Company will not 
only ne<j^otiate the sale of their own property, as laid 
down on the plat in the front of this book, but are prepared 
to do a sound real estate and loan business, guaranteed under 
a charter of the State of Maryland. 

The Humbird Land and Improvement Company has a large 
paid up capital, and are therefore prepared to buy, sell and 
exchange real property, manage estates, negotiate loans, 
collect rents, pa)' interest and taxes and look after the interest 
of persons owning property here or elsewhere. 

We will also cheerfully assist manufacturers desiring to 
locate here by giving them information as to cheap and good 
sites and procure for them reasonable prices for the same, in 
which case we will guarantee the title, and in all other respects 
bind ourselves for the performance of whatever transactions 
we mav engage in under our charter. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



014 313 917 7 1 




PRESS OF 

ARTHUR SHRIVER & CO., 

CUMBERLAND, MD. 



